When I walk in the door suddenly I’m bombarded by toddlers
hugging my knees. Some of them
wave at me, smiling, and can’t wait for me to play with them. Others reach up just wanting to be
cuddled and held.
Smiles.
Giggling. Laughing. Playing. Snuggling. That’s
how I get to spend my month in Nigeria.
We get to bring light, love, truth, and joy to a small orphanage in
Osogbo, Nigeria. Despite all the
warnings we’ve received about Nigeria, we’re having an incredible month – one
of my favorites on the race thus far.
The orphanage is awesome and unlike any other orphanage I’ve
been to thus far. When you walk in
you can feel the light and love in the atmosphere. The kids know that they are loved. There is a lightness to the place. Many orphanages we’ve been to don’t feel that way. We feel blessed to build on that
foundation.
Most of the kids are too young to understand the meaning of Bible stories or what we tell them about their Heavenly Father. We tell them anyway because we know their spirits understand. However, it has challenged us to trust God even more – to trust him that he’s at work thru what he’s called us to do, as simple as it is.
So we’re at a great orphanage. What do we have to offer?
Love.
Truth. Joy. Yes, they experience those things, but
we get to bring an increase of it, and we bring a new perspective on it as
well. We spend most of our days
playing, cuddling, praying for, and speaking life over these kids. We pray healing over their colds and
over their lives. We pray that
they will encounter the Father’s love and truly know who their Heavenly Father
is. We pray that they will grow up
knowing their identity in Christ, and we speak that identity over them
daily.
They are sons and daughters of God, covered in grace, loved,
cherished, redeemed, upheld by the Father’s hand, chosen, royalty, gifted, of
incredible value, provided for, with a great inheritance, and made to uniquely
reflect their Heavenly Father.
You are all those things too, by the way. We can’t hear the truth about our
identity enough. We need people to
encourage us and push us to walk in that identity. We need people to call out the greatness in us. Do you believe that you are made for
greatness in the Kingdom of God?
Because you are.
We want these kids to grow up knowing their identity, their
inheritance, and the fact that they have access to the Kingdom at any
moment. We want them to grow up
laying hold of the Kingdom.
It’s a sweet month.
I get to love kids by playing and holding them. But I also get to share a love that is
greater than we can imagine. The greatest part is that because they are kids,
they accept God’s truths whole-heartedly and without questions or
rationalizations. They accept the
pure simple truth for what it is. I
get to share a love that will outlast our 4 weeks here. I get to share a Heavenly Father that
will care for them much more than I ever could. That is awesome.
